Eject Diskhttp://ejectdisk.com
Your Daily Dose of Vitamin GSat, 26 Oct 2013 23:29:42 +0000en-UShourly1http://wordpress.org/?v=3.7.4Rumor: According to CBOAT 720p is the Tip of the Iceberg for Xbox One Problemshttp://ejectdisk.com/rumor-according-cboat-720p-tip-iceberg-xbox-one-problems/
http://ejectdisk.com/rumor-according-cboat-720p-tip-iceberg-xbox-one-problems/#commentsSat, 26 Oct 2013 21:49:36 +0000http://ejectdisk.com/?p=2592It seems like Microsoft just cannot catch a break as of late. This started of as a simple update on the latest 720p incident, but it seems like it might evolve into a story of its own. According to “crazy buttocks on a train” this is just the start. When one user posted “An ass [&hellip

]]>It seems like Microsoft just cannot catch a break as of late. This started of as a simple update on the latest 720p incident, but it seems like it might evolve into a story of its own. According to “crazy buttocks on a train” this is just the start. When one user posted “An ass storm is coming” in the 720p thread on NeoGaf, CBOAT simply responded “um yess butt thiasisnt it. wWati for laucnh.” Is something even more damning going to turn up? Could it have something to do with potential OS problems?

According to NeoGaf mod “bishoptl“, if CBOAT were to spill the beans on all the Xbox One technical issues he has shared with him via PM, the world would implode. “bishoptl” is usually the mod that bans people who post insider info without first providing him with evidence in a PM.

To quote:

“If CBOAT ever spills publicly what s/he shared via PM regarding a myriad of other technical issues going on right now…I’m going right back in that shelter and welding it shut.“

If any of these rumors are confirmed, it would only further indicate that the Xbox One was simply announced way to soon as a response to SONY‘s PlayStation 4 announcement in February.

]]>http://ejectdisk.com/rumor-according-cboat-720p-tip-iceberg-xbox-one-problems/feed/2(Updated) Rumor: Call Of Duty: Ghost and Battlefield 4 both 720p on Xbox One according to Jeremy Conradhttp://ejectdisk.com/call-duty-ghosts-720p-xbox-one/
http://ejectdisk.com/call-duty-ghosts-720p-xbox-one/#commentsSat, 26 Oct 2013 21:05:08 +0000http://ejectdisk.com/?p=2572Update 4: CheapyD from Cheap Ass Gamer is also confirming that Call Of Duty: Ghosts is 720p on Xbox One and 1080p on the PS4 I’m not reviewing any Xbox One games so I will tell you right now, Ghosts on XB1 is indeed 720p vs PS4′s 1080p. Could that change? Maybe? — David Abrams [&hellip

Update 2:

There’s a storm comin’ boys! This latest incident has already caused quite a stir, especially on NeoGaf, but according to “crazy buttocks on a train” this is just the start. When one user posted “An ass storm is coming” CBOAT simply responded “um yess butt thiasisnt it. wWati for laucnh.” Is something even more damning going to turn up? Could it have something to do with potential OS problems?

Update 1:

Digging a bit deeper it looks like Jeremy’s source for the Call of Duty: Ghosts rumor may be “famousortimer” from NeoGaf. While this does not discredit the the information, it simply does not add any new confirmation to rumor. As for the Battlefield 4 part, I have yet to find out where he got that from. “famousmortimer” states that it isn’t him, so whether that is from an inside source or pure speculation is anyone’s guess right now.

Original:

Lately there have been some rumors circulating on the internet and particularly NeoGaf, regarding the fact that Call of Duty: Ghosts would in fact not be 1080p on Microsoft‘s latest console.

A few minutes ago it would seem that Jeremy Conrad “confirmed” the rumor by tweeting the following:

He also stated in another tweet that this is the reason that the Call of Duty: Ghosts review embargo is going to be lifted on the 5th for all consoles except the Xbox One. That embargo will be lifted later on the 12th.

#CODGhosts review embargo lifts on Nov 5th for all platforms…except #XboxOne. That lifts on the 12th because of the 720p problem…

If you don’t know Jeremy Conrad is a former IGN editor who has worked on both sides of the industry. Does this mean that everything he says is true? No, but he doesn’t seem to have anything to gain from lying. If this is true, what could this potentially mean for the Xbox One? Not only is it more expensive, but if it’s competitor can run the games at 1080p where does that put Microsoft?

]]>http://ejectdisk.com/call-duty-ghosts-720p-xbox-one/feed/1GTA V Trailerhttp://ejectdisk.com/gta-v-trailer/
http://ejectdisk.com/gta-v-trailer/#commentsThu, 29 Aug 2013 15:16:25 +0000http://ejectdisk.com/?p=2559With just 18 days to go till release, Rockstar North has decided to tease us once again with another fantastic trailer. Usually I am a massive fan of trailers, but these latest outings to Los Santos just seem to make the wait of so much more painful. The trailer shows everything that we’ve ever wanted from the [&hellip

]]>With just 18 days to go till release, Rockstar North has decided to tease us once again with another fantastic trailer. Usually I am a massive fan of trailers, but these latest outings to Los Santos just seem to make the wait of so much more painful.

The trailer shows everything that we’ve ever wanted from the Grand Theft Auto franschise. Crazy characters, drama, great soundtrack, intense action, oh and I almost forgot, a dude in full body armor wielding a minigun. Yes, a minigun. The GTA we all know and love is back baby.
To quote the great scholar Brucie Kibbutz:

‘Be Genetically Different, Baby!’

——————————————————————————————–

GTA V hits the streets worldwide on 17th September for PS3 and Xbox 360. For more information visit their website.

]]>http://ejectdisk.com/gta-v-trailer/feed/1The Most Artistic Graphics in Gameshttp://ejectdisk.com/the-most-artistic-graphics-of-current-gen-games/
http://ejectdisk.com/the-most-artistic-graphics-of-current-gen-games/#commentsMon, 19 Aug 2013 19:17:06 +0000http://ejectdisk.com/?p=2477With next-gen pushing realism, we now look back on the games that pushed artistic boundaries. Next-gen consoles are upon us, and it won’t be long until we are playing games that look face-meltingly realistic. Games like Killzone: Shadowfall and working-title Deep Down. But what about games that choose a more artistic approach to the way [&hellip

]]>With next-gen pushing realism, we now look back on the games that pushed artistic boundaries.

Next-gen consoles are upon us, and it won’t be long until we are playing games that look face-meltingly realistic. Games like Killzone: Shadowfall and working-title Deep Down. But what about games that choose a more artistic approach to the way the game is presented?

Today, next-gen seems to mean “better graphics.” Hopefully this doesn’t end up being the case and innovations in other areas are pushed to truly define this next generation of consoles.

This article is going to look back on five games that really pushed art and design over realistic textures and facial animations. Hopefully developers learn from these games, and truly understand that a good game can use simplicity over complexity, and art over reality to truly offer unique one-of-a-kind experiences.

1. Proteus

Proteus nearly surpasses classification as a “game.” This is an experience. If you have had a bad day, come home, put on some sound proof headphones in a dark, dark room, and be taken away from the troubles of your day. This is partly because of the unique and incredible sound design, but the real star of the show is the awkward looking, yet beautiful and enveloping graphics. It might as well be a tribute to the days of the classic Atari 2600. Trees look like they are nothing but cardboard cutouts, and the various creatures feel as though they have no dimension to them. Yet this game will dazzle you. It almost gives you that feeling of “look how small I am in the universe.” This could have been an aesthetically beautiful game with realistic graphics and lighting textures, but they went the path of the sparse and simple, which truly adds to the experience of the game.

2. Hotline: Miami

Atmospheric, catchy, and slightly messed up; Hotline Miami is a one-of-a-kind game. This is largely due to the beautiful retro-style graphics. It feels like this could have been a old school arcade game. The onslaught of colors is astounding and everything from hitting a henchmen with a baseball bat to using your primal instinct in the heat of battle is enhanced by the great graphics. None of these textures were probably hard to make, but they fit this adventure so well that it is one of the main reasons this game will get under your skin.

3. Ni No Kuni: Wrath of the White Witch

This game is a precious gem. I hope that if you have not played it, you will go pick it up right now. I have fallen in love with this game, and truly think it is one of the best RPGs made this year. On top of it playing almost perfectly, this is the most beautiful Cel-Shaded game I have seen in a long time. It is so hard not to just stare at the screen at certain points in wonder. It feels like you are playing an anime. That is an incredible feat to have accomplished, but the good people at Level-5 and Studio Ghibli not only accomplished it, they have set the standard for game developers that want to take this same artistic direction in the future. So much love and heart went into this game, and not only does it show, it is impossible not to notice.

4. Journey

Have you played this game? If you have not, you need to go download and play it right now. Yes, you. This might be the most spiritual game I have ever played. I fell in love with it from the second I picked up the controller, but that was largely in part because of the incredible art style. It is absolutely beautiful, and there were moments where my jaw literally dropped. A few times, I actually just stopped moving and put the camera behind my character. It was like a watercolor painting. It is elegant, and it delivers moments that are as close to standing at the top of the Grand Canyon as you can be without actually being there. Incredibly engrossing, and stunningly beautiful, you will be amazed from moment to moment in Journey. Please go play this game.

5. Limbo

Simplicity is a wonderful thing when used correctly. However, Limbo goes as far as it can with how little you actually see. It is a bleak and intimidating world that is only made even more so by its perfect use of blacks, whites, and dull grays. It is astounding how much the atmosphere is enhanced by these simple colors, and when you see some freaky looking long-legged spider heading your way, you will panic. Not because of how it looks, but because of how you can’t REALLY see what it actually looks like. It’s almost like I was happier to be playing it because it was so dark, because had I actually been able to see what I was looking at, I might have been disappointed. But because I couldn’t actually make out what everything was, my experience was enhanced. I was scared at points, which is always good when you play a survival horror type game.

These games have stuck with me because of certain moments of imagery or beauty that happened during them. Hopefully, developers in the future will see these games and understand that while yes, we would like some games that are as realistic as possible, we also would love games that set new standards for artistic visuals. The more this is pushed, the more next generation will be remembered, and the more games from that generation will be played annually. It is a business, but it should also be a platform from which developers can express themselves and give us new kinds of things to look at. We want to play a game, but it helps to have a unique-looking game as well.

—

What are some of your favorite artistic games? Let us know in the comments below! Be sure to follow us on twitter (@EjectDiskmag) or subscribe to us on YouTube for more quality gaming content!

]]>http://ejectdisk.com/the-most-artistic-graphics-of-current-gen-games/feed/0Aeria Games Announces New MMORPGhttp://ejectdisk.com/aeria-games-announces-new-mmorpg/
http://ejectdisk.com/aeria-games-announces-new-mmorpg/#commentsMon, 12 Aug 2013 14:27:39 +0000http://ejectdisk.com/?p=2507This year’s Otakon played host to many people, fans and personalities alike. Among those present, major publisher Aeria Games decided to visit, carrying with them a full panel and the reveal of a new title: Aura Kingdom. The new fantasy MMORPG–which will feature anime-style art and companions–is being developed by X-Legends, the very same studio [&hellip

]]>This year’s Otakon played host to many people, fans and personalities alike. Among those present, major publisher Aeria Games decided to visit, carrying with them a full panel and the reveal of a new title: Aura Kingdom.

The new fantasy MMORPG–which will feature anime-style art and companions–is being developed by X-Legends, the very same studio that brought fans games like Eden Eternal and Grand Fantasia.

JT Nguyen, Aeria Games’ Chief Operating Officer, also showed enthusiasm for the game. He was quoted as stating the following:

“Aura Kingdom is the highest quality game we’ve ever seen in its genre, and we’re very glad to be able to share it with the eager fans at this event…”

“We have high expectations that this game will resonate well with our community and are excited to work with such talented developers once again.”

Players in Aura Kingdom will encounter unique interactive companions that play an integral role in their journey. Far more than simple pets, these companions grow more formidable over the course of the game and gain powerful combat abilities—including joining with the player to initiate spectacular combo attacks. The companions can also go on errands and retain memories of all their adventures, frequently conversing with the player about their past exploits and battles.

Along with a plethora of screenshots and logos, Aeria Games also released a teaser trailer for the game which shows several parts of the world, as well as the style and features.

Every year, the Baltimore convention center hosts Otakon, a convention known more for its anime/cosplaying rather than video games. This year’s event saw an interesting mix of anime fans and die-hard MMORPG lovers (and even both!).

Aeria Games is a global publisher known for releasing and supporting numerous free-to-play titles. With a userbase of over 40 million, the company is a major player in the MMORPG scene–particularly anime MMO’s.

—

For more articles like this, be sure to follow us on twitter (@Ejectdiskmag) and subscribe to our Youtube channel!

]]>http://ejectdisk.com/aeria-games-announces-new-mmorpg/feed/0New Screenshots Unveiled for Edge of Eternityhttp://ejectdisk.com/new-screenshots-unveiled-for-edge-of-eternity/
http://ejectdisk.com/new-screenshots-unveiled-for-edge-of-eternity/#commentsSun, 11 Aug 2013 18:06:03 +0000http://ejectdisk.com/?p=2490Multiple brand-new screenshots were recently revealed for the upcoming sci-fi/steampunk RPG, Edge of Eternity. Midgar Studio, developer for the turn-based game, have been slowly building up hype since the middle of May, when they released a logo for the title. According to the official description of the game, “Edge of Eternity is a RPG turn [&hellip

]]>http://ejectdisk.com/new-screenshots-unveiled-for-edge-of-eternity/feed/0A Successor to City of Heroes? An Interview With Missing Worlds Mediahttp://ejectdisk.com/an-interview-with-missing-worlds-media/
http://ejectdisk.com/an-interview-with-missing-worlds-media/#commentsSun, 11 Aug 2013 15:51:28 +0000http://ejectdisk.com/?p=2474What happens when a fan favorite game falls? When an entire online community is displaced? If you’re not an avid multiplayer gamer, then it’s an odd concept; the idea that a game can go on and on. But millions of Massively Multiplayer Online gamers become very attached to their games, their universe, their characters. Such [&hellip

]]>What happens when a fan favorite game falls? When an entire online community is displaced?

If you’re not an avid multiplayer gamer, then it’s an odd concept; the idea that a game can go on and on. But millions of Massively Multiplayer Online gamers become very attached to their games, their universe, their characters.

Such was the case with NCSoft’s superhero themed City of Heroes. After the announcement that the game would close, the support that was rallied to try and keep the game going garnered international attention, not just among gamers, but also among traditional news outlets. Such was the passion that the Save CoH movement generated that a new idea was formed: If the game they loved couldn’t be saved, then a new game would have to be made, to keep the spirit alive. This idea lead to the creation of Missing World’s Media and their flagship The Phoenix Project. The creators were kind enough to take some time out of their busy schedules to answer a few questions about their project, the process of creating an MMO, and what players can expect in the future.

EDM: For those who may not have been introduced to the Phoenix Project yet, can you give us a basic overview of what the project is, and what the game will be like?

S. Quinn (Studio director): The project is intended to create a spiritual successor to City of Heroes, a Superhero-themed MMO that many on the project played and loved. We are working to build a game that will share the spirit of community and fun that our predecessor had, and continue the joy of being able to create your own unique superpowered character and go off on adventures. We are also aiming to learn from the experience of the devs that worked on that game, and build on the years of hindsight and technological advances to create an even better game, that people can enjoy even if they never heard of City of Heroes. Our goal is to combine the inherent joy that makes kids tie towels around their necks as capes and run around the yard “flying” with modern MMO mechanics to create a uniquely fun gaming experience.

Since few of you (to my knowledge) have worked on making games in the past, what was the motivating force behind creating the game?

David MacKay (Business and Marketing Lead): For me, my major motivating force has been the desire to learn something new. I have always admitted that I am not involved with the project for the same reasons as anyone else. In the past I’ve stuck largely to card and board games, working with friends, so this is the first time I’ve worked in the digital medium in this regard. That said, I think the unifying motivating force for all of us is that we don’t want to see a community we’ve been a part of for years scattered to the winds.

S. Quinn: City of Heroes was primarily a game about saving the world. Its players were uniquely sorted for being the kind of people who want to save the world, and when the game ended, that spirit continued. Most of our developers played CoH, and once it closed down, shifting to saving the “world” by creating a new game for the community to play was the next logical step. As the project gained structure and momentum, people with useful skills who were not CoH players began to join the effort as well. We all want to make a great game that captures the best parts of our inspiration.

How important has community involvement been to the project, and do you see that involvement persisting in the future?

S. Quinn: Massively important. Our project grew out of a community effort, and we intend to continue with strong connections to the community as we move ahead. We have many features planned to keep that connection strong, and one of our key design points is that, if our servers ever close, the community will still be able to play and share the game that they purchased, indefinitely.

What challenges have presented themselves? Was there ever a time you thought “I don’t know if this is going to work?”

David MacKay:I think the single largest challenge we’ve faced is getting everyone onto the same page in regards to particular aspects of the game. Due to the incredibly decentralized nature of the way we’re doing things, it is extremely difficult for normal channels of communication and review to function effectively. I think a lot of us harbour private doubts as to whether or not we’ll succeed, as I know I certainly do. The thing is, it is because of those private doubts that I strive to ensure that they are not accurate.

S. Quinn: The transition from community project to game studio has been a rocky one- the mindsets and organization structures are very different, and we have had the inevitable personality conflicts. We are now getting our feet under us as a studio, and the worst seems to be behind us. :knocks on wood:

What facet of the game excites you the most?

David MacKay: Strangely enough, it isn’t the promise of incredible customization, or the finely crafted lore that we hope to use in the game that gets my attention. It is the promise of doing something that has never been done before. We are, quite honestly, building a something in a way that has never been attempted in such a scale, and the implications of success far outweigh any specific aspect of the game. It is a package deal.

S. Quinn: To me, it’s the uniqueness of the stories. You get to build a character of your own devising, not based on some personality archetype we came up with. Then you get to send that character through stories designed to explore various facets of the superhero genre. This isn’t a game that could just be reskinned for another genre, and I love that.

How important to the future of gaming do you see independently created and financed games being?

David MacKay: I see them as being incredibly important as a foundation for innovation. Consider Minecraft as an example. It is an incredibly simple game with nearly unheard of popularity for an independently produced title – over 11 million people have purchased it, many of which did so well before it was officially out of beta. It is through independent studios that new things will be attempted and risks will be taken – we all know full well the risks involved with the project.

S. Quinn: I think they are going to be gradually more and more important over time. As the distribution channels for indie games improve, there is less and less marketing benefit to having a big studio backing a game, and indie games don’t need to make nearly as much money to break even as the big-production games. I don’t think we’ll ever lose big studios, but I think the indie component of the industry is nowhere near as developed as it can be.

What sort of audience are you hoping to reach with the game?

S. Quinn: Really, we’re hoping to attract a range of types, but the ones we most hope to appeal to are those who just aren’t finding what they want in the current supply of games. Who want more customization than is possible in the existing superhero MMOs. Who want more story than most MMOs in general. Who want community to be more than finding a few people to game with and ignoring everyone else from that point forward. People who don’t usually play MMOs at all, but who can enjoy playing a super with their friends.

Will there be role-play specific features or goodies for players that choose to do that?

S. Quinn: Many. There is a highly granular system for tracking the NPC reactions to the actions of the PC, both in missions and in dialogue interactions. While it is possible to speed-click through most of the social interactions for the combat-bunnies, they are not just there to take up space; RP-oriented players will find a detailed and responsive plot that they can affect with their words as much as their choice of combat strategies and outcomes.

It’s a bit early, I know, but what are the general plans for future content? Are you planning for special “issues” as updates or looking at more of an expansion pack model?

S. Quinn: At the moment, we are planning for regularly released Issues, which advance time in the gameverse and bring on the next chunk of long-running plots and new side quests. Expansions will bring additional content- new powersets, areas, and so on. Those will be released in conjunction with an Issue, so that the plotlines showcasing the new content appear side-by-side with the long-running plotlines.

One question that is on every prospective MMO player’s mind: Do you have any firm ideas on whether it will be a paid subscriptions only game, or are there plans for a free-to-play version?

S. Quinn:Free-to-play with premium content that isn’t essential to complete the game is our plan, but the details of how we will make that work are still somewhat up in the air. We definitely do not plan to paywall the game, and we won’t be building in the “technically, you could finish without paying, but it will take hundreds of hours of annoying X to do it” tricks that some games use to pressure people into buying. Our goal is to release a game with premium content that’s actually worth the money and that players will find appealing at the price.

I’d like to thank you both for taking time to answer these questions for our readers! For more information on Missing Worlds Media and The Phoenix Project be sure and check out their website.

Have more questions you’d like to see answered, comments on the answers, or words of encouragement for this dev team? Leave a comment below!

]]>http://ejectdisk.com/an-interview-with-missing-worlds-media/feed/0Review: ‘Injustice: Gods Among Us’http://ejectdisk.com/review-injustice-gods-among-us/
http://ejectdisk.com/review-injustice-gods-among-us/#commentsFri, 02 Aug 2013 19:19:17 +0000http://ejectdisk.com/?p=2205NetherRealms Studio’s new DC Comics fighting game, Injustice: Gods Among Us, is a love letter to fans! NetherRealm Studios, the guys behind Mortal Kombat, has given DC Comic fanboys reason to rejoice. Injustice: Gods Among Us is a DC themed fighting game. If you have ever wanted to see Batman and Cyborg throw down, this is [&hellip

NetherRealm Studios, the guys behind Mortal Kombat, has given DC Comic fanboys reason to rejoice. Injustice: Gods Among Us is a DC themed fighting game. If you have ever wanted to see Batman and Cyborg throw down, this is your chance.

Let me just start by saying this is a very good fighting game. The most important thing for fighting games to accomplish is balance. Every character should have a chance to come out victorious. That has been accomplished, and Injustice provides a great character roster that is ever growing thanks to DLC. (Martian Manhunter is on his way, thank you NetherRealm!) You have your balanced all around characters like Batman and Green Lantern, to the power heavy such as Bane and Lex Luthor. My personal favorite is Green Arrow for his agility and his hit-and-run-style abilities, but I feel as though with enough time with any character, anybody, including myself, could pull off even the most intimidating combos.

There is a lot of fan service here. Seeing Superman in his New 52 skin is truly a sight to behold. They even included the same voice actor from the Teen Titans animated series for Cyborg! This game is one giant love letter to fans, and I truly couldn’t be happier in that aspect.

The singleplayer story however is something of a letdown. It is executed well for the most part, and the story is good, but a lot of the fan favorite characters, including Wonder Woman and Raven, get shoved aside. It follows a pretty predictable path of having you play as a one fighter for three fights, then moving you on to another. It had some good moments, but I didn’t find myself wanting to play it.

The S.T.A.R. Labs section of the single player is also very hit or miss. At points, you can really see what they were trying to do with it, and it is a great idea. It just isn’t developed enough to be a highlight of the game. A lot of the missions for the various characters feel very uninspired. I don’t want to control Catwoman’s Cat escaping from prison, I want to play as Catwoman. Little things like this were a chore and didn’t make me want to play the mission, I just wanted to beat them because my internal OCD (Obsessive Compulsive Disorder), wanted me to get three stars in every challenge.

The fighting controls do feel wonderful though. At points, it feels like a well oiled machine. If you spend time with your favorite fighter, you will hit a point where you can juggle the other fighter like a pro. There are super moves that exemplify each character (each of which can be avoided by the other fighter if correctly blocked or dodged) and there are also intractable objects to throw at your opponents, or they may be used to hop around the stage if you are a more agile type of character.

There is a lot of strategy to it if you are willing to look for it, but any person can pick up and button mash with the best of them.

As far as the graphics go, it’s kind of a mixed bag. The character models in particular look great, but overall the game doesn’t do anything to push boundaries. Environments look good at some points, but other times textures are blurry. However, it does run at a solid 60 fps and I have not seen any screen tearing of which I can speak of.

Where this game shines is online. I love matching up with my brother ever night to play a few rounds as Green Arrow and Deathstroke. It uses a very simple interface that makes matchmaking a breeze. There is even a leveling system so you can move up in the ranks. There are 100 levels to get through by gathering experience from fights, but the halfway point is actually level 95. Just to give you an idea how much that is, I’ve been playing Injustice since it came out for at least a half-hour every day online, and I’m only at level 66. So, if you just love fighting for the sake of fighting, there is a lot of replay-ability here.

Injustice does a lot of things right. The combat is great, and the amount of times I smiled to myself from Solomon Grundy reciting his entire poem is too many to count. It just doesn’t have the extra’s to make all those S.T.A.R. Labs missions worth it. However, this is a fighting game. You are supposed to fight, and the fighting aspect in Injustice is done very well.

]]>http://ejectdisk.com/review-injustice-gods-among-us/feed/0Surprise! Bioshock Infinite’s First DLC Available Todayhttp://ejectdisk.com/surprise-bioshock-infinites-first-dlc-available-today/
http://ejectdisk.com/surprise-bioshock-infinites-first-dlc-available-today/#commentsTue, 30 Jul 2013 21:09:46 +0000http://ejectdisk.com/?p=2451So if the apex of your Bioshock Infinite experience was blowing apart Motorized Patriots, you’re in luck. The first of the game’s three announced DLC installments, Clash in the Clouds, drops today, and it’s a combat-focused battle arena that dishes out waves of Columbia’s most aggravating enemies for you to mow down to your heart’s content. New maps and leaderboards [&hellip

]]>So if the apex of your BioshockInfinite experience was blowing apart Motorized Patriots, you’re in luck. The first of the game’s three announced DLC installments, Clash in the Clouds, drops today, and it’s a combat-focused battle arena that dishes out waves of Columbia’s most aggravating enemies for you to mow down to your heart’s content. New maps and leaderboards add new challenges and bragging rights to contend for, but if the combat system just wasn’t your thing, they’ve got you covered.

The next two DLC installments, as announced by designer Ken Levine on Polygon, are a more heavily narrative-driven experience that allow the player to experience Rapture at the zenith of its glory. Both Booker and Elizabeth will be player characters in the Burial at Sea content, and though no release dates have been set, it looks like the folks that invested in the season pass are going to get their money’s worth.

Clash in the Clouds is now available for download on PC, Xbox Live and PS3 at $4.99/400 Microsoft points.

]]>http://ejectdisk.com/surprise-bioshock-infinites-first-dlc-available-today/feed/0Stories in Games: Powerful or Pointless?http://ejectdisk.com/stories-in-games-powerful-or-pointless/
http://ejectdisk.com/stories-in-games-powerful-or-pointless/#commentsTue, 30 Jul 2013 20:32:07 +0000http://ejectdisk.com/?p=2445Games can’t tell stories. At least according to George Lucas. Is that true, and what does it mean to you and me? He would know, right? Good ol’ George would be able to tell us easily what a good story involves, what it entails, how to know when it’s successful. After all, he firmly believes [&hellip

]]>Games can’t tell stories. At least according to George Lucas. Is that true, and what does it mean to you and me?

He would know, right? Good ol’ George would be able to tell us easily what a good story involves, what it entails, how to know when it’s successful. After all, he firmly believes that he told an excellent story with the Star Wars prequels. So we can use him as a touchstone: everything he says is actually the opposite of reality. At least in some respects.

While speaking at a panel a the University of Southern California, Lucas and Spielberg discussed the failure of games to be a proper medium of storytelling. They had some very strong words to say to support this. Things like “…by its very nature there cannot be a plot in a game.” He supports this with saying that you can’t have plots in things like football games or, oddly, “feeding Christians to lions.” The problems, according to Lucas, are control and empathy.

This is not going to be a post bashing what Lucas said. This interview broke last month, there’s already been enough articles criticizing everything that was said. But the idea of stories in videogames still warrants discussion. We see a constant divide in gaming over the subject, split between casual gamers that want to shoot birds at pigs, “hardcore” gamers that measure worth by kill/death ratios online, and the rest of us that enjoy a variety of gaming experiences.

Lucas isn’t far off, honestly, with a few things he said. The popularity of games like Call of Duty has been tied to the online play it offers, the ability to challenge yourself against people who think in insults and slurs. The “campaigns” that these games offer are 6-8 hour tutorials on how weapons work and what the maps look like. The reason you buy Call of Duty or Battlefield isn’t because you want a great story, it’s because you want to shoot things repeatedly. People outside the industry, and even some inside the industry, look at the sales numbers for those sorts of games and declare them to be what all gamers want. That isn’t the case.

When games first came around, story wasn’t really needed. You didn’t need to understand the reason Paddle One was playing so fervently against Paddle Two in Pong. Mario being a plumber eating flowers and mushrooms to get special powers was perfectly fine because that didn’t matter. If you wanted story, you game up control and graphics and played text-based adventure games. But in the ’90s we started seeing the rise of the PC adventure game. These were often simple point and click or side-scrolling games, but the focus was actually on telling the story. Over time, story started cropping up more and more in games. Some even had actors filming live-action cutscenes.

Fast forward to today. We have games that spend as much time, energy, and focus on their writing as they do on their gameplay and visuals. But is what Lucas posits accurate? Does the fact that we have control over characters mean that we lose touch with the plot? Does having virtual actors and characters mean we have no empathy?

No. Having control presents storytellers, and gamers, with a unique opportunity. Instead of telling a linear story with no real variations, writers have the opportunity to present a multitude of options and let them lead to different endings, some with minor differences, others with major. The ability to import characters in games like Dragon Age and the Mass Effect series even allows for direct continuation of stories based off earlier choices. It’s like reading a book through, wondering what would have happened if some plot point in the middle shifted left a few feet, then getting to read a whole new ending to the book because of that one change. It’s something that simply can’t be done on a large scale in movies, television, or books.

Speaking of books, the idea that we can only empathize with characters portrayed by actors we see and hear is an insult to people who can read. Before visual media came along, books were gripping readers by the heart and leading them on all sorts of emotional journeys. Seeing and hearing the characters wasn’t necessary in the least. So put aside the fact that as technology improves we’re getting to the point where characters can look just like their voice actors, it is entirely possible to empathize with game characters. I know grown men who decried overly sensitive tales in games and movies for years that were brought to their knees by The Last of Us.

The potential for empathy, for control to actually lead to better storytelling is there. We’re seeing it done right in a lot of games. Some are stumbling a bit in their attempts, but more and more we’re seeing developers reaching out to capture, not just the minds, but the hearts of their audience.

Sure, people, even story-loving gamers, will continue to buy CoD and like games for the same reason people continue to go see Michael Bay’s explosion-fetish-fuel movies like Transformers, or Hugh Jackman as a six-foot tall Wolverine: because sometimes you want to forget about story, turn your brain off, and just watch action. That does not mean, however, that videogames and storytelling have to be treated as mutually exclusive.

Do you prefer story-centric games? Think that they detract too much from what games are “really” supposed to be about? Leave us a comment and let us know what you think!